


Now, Then, Inbetween and Later

by missthingsplace



Category: Torchwood
Genre: AO3 1 Million, Angst, Character Death, Complete, M/M, Rating: NC17, Series, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-15
Updated: 2014-02-15
Packaged: 2018-01-12 12:55:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,894
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1186454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/missthingsplace/pseuds/missthingsplace
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Summary: Jack is taken, Ianto tries to get on with life while Jack is desperate to return home<br/>Warnings: Angst, character death (non Torchwood), mentions of torture.<br/>Rating: 15 - For language and adult concepts</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Now - Prologue

 

The morning started off like it did three or four times a week now, the sun rose early in the morning although today it was hidden behind dark clouds and rain was lashing against the window almost horizontally as the strong wind blew it.

Jack was awake, lying on his side watching the sleeping figure next to him. His brown hair tossled on the pillow from sleep and their earlier lovemaking. Jack knew he should wake him, that they needed to get into work.

Ianto hated getting to work later than the other when he arrived with Jack, he knew they could have gone in separately but he hated doing that after they had spent the night together. So Jack knew he'd be pissed if he left without waking him.

It seemed so unfair, as they had been making love till 3am and it was only 7am now. As Jack barely slept this was no hardship for him, but Ianto worked hard and played hard Jack smiled as he thought that to himself.

Jack carefully moved the few inches over the bed that separated their bodies and spooned against Ianto's back, he placed a soft kiss on the back of Ianto's neck and then placed a hand gently on Ianto's hip as he blew on Ianto's ear.

Jack felt Ianto stir slightly under his touch, but not enough to come into consciousness. He kissed his neck again then spoke into his ear, his voice barely louder than a whisper.

'Time to wake up sleepy head.'

Jack then nibbled in his earlobe.

Ianto let out a murmur and rolled onto his back and opened one eye.

'Is it that time already.' Ianto muttered and he shut his eye again.

'I'm afraid so beautiful.'

'Remind me to never let you seduce me when we don't get in till 1am in the morning.'

'I didn't hear you complaining.'

I'm sure I remember moaning about something.'

'It wasn't in complaint.'

'You're so bad for me.'

'And you love it.'

Ianto opened his eyes and looked straight into Jack's.

'I can't get enough of those gorgeous eyes.'

'Only my eyes?' Jack grinned.

'Well, there maybe other parts too.' Ianto admitted smiling.

'I guessed as much.'

Ianto glanced at the clock by the bed, which now real 7.16am, they need to get up and ready for work if they were going to get there before the rest of the team. After a short good morning kiss, they dragged themselves from the warmth of the bed and got themselves ready for work.

The morning carried on in much the same vein, nothing much happened. Jack spent the morning in his office doing paperwork and making phone calls, every now and then Ianto would bring him a mug of coffee and they'd have a sneaky kiss before Ianto went back to his work.

Gwen, Toshiko and Owen had gone out, to the other side of Cardiff to check out a rumour that was circulating. It was likely it was something and nothing, but had made the local paper and they should make sure it really wasn't anything they should be concerned with.

Ianto had been down in the archives for the first part of the morning, there was still a huge backlog of alien artifacts in boxes that needed labeling and indexing and placing in the correct part of the archives depending on whether they knew what it was or not and if it was considered dangerous.

The last hour before lunch Ianto spent generally tidying up, walking around picking up discarded coffee cups and empty takeaway containers wondering why, not for the first time why everyone seemed to think he was just there to pick up after them.

At 1pm exactly he walked up to Jack's office with two mugs of coffee, sandwiches and two pastries they had bought on their way in from the small shop along the bay along with paper napkins. Jack was on the phone, Ianto placed the coffees, pastries and Jack's sandwich on his desk and sat opposite him to eat his own sandwich.

He never saw it coming, at first it seemed like an earthquake as the earth seemed to shift beneath them. Then there was a bright light, so bright they had to shield their eyes with their hands. Then there were two men in the room, stood either side of Jack.

They were dressed in some kind of uniform, black trousers, shirts and ties and black caps on their heads, not unlike the red ones the soldiers of UNIT wore. Before either of them could say a word they were gone again, taking Jack with them, leaving Ianto stunned and speechless.

TBC


	2. Chapter 1a - Then

Ianto was choking, he coughed hard beginning to panic when finally the piece of sandwich he had been chewing dislodged from his throat and flew across the office into the empty space where Jack had been minutes before. Dragging in gasping breaths he tried to make sense of what had just happened.

As oxygen flooded into his bloodstream again he motivated himself into action, he was the other side of Jack's desk, fingers flying over the keyboard of the computer as he brought up the CCTV images for the office for the last few minutes.

As it got close to the time the earth seemed to shake he put in on slow motion, then frame by frame till he froze it at a point where the men were stood either side of Jack. They were obviously soldiers or police of some kind and in the few seconds between them arriving, grabbing Jack by one arm each and all three of them vanishing Jack had had no time to react.

Ianto activated his blue tooth and called the others back to the hub, he didn't explain why just said it was urgent. They could hear the stress and panic in his voice, they abandoned the interviews of the locals they were conducting and headed back to the hub in the SUV.

When they arrived back they found Ianto in Jack's office, watching an image of Jack vanishing with two strangers on the monitor.

'What the fuck was that?' Gwen shouted.

'They came out of nowhere and they took Jack.'

'And you didn't try to stop them?' Owen sneered.

'No time, to fast.' Ianto was trying hard not to fall apart.

'Ianto, what happened exactly.' Toshiko asked, looking daggers at Owen.

'We were having lunch, I had just sat there, Jack was on the phone and the ground began to shake, like we were having an earthquake.'

'And then?' Toshiko asked softly, she could see the tears threatening to fall from his eyes.

'There was a bright light, like looking directly into the sun that blinded us for a few moments I guess, then when it had faded those two men were there, seconds later they were gone, taking Jack with them.'

'So who the hell are they?' Owen asked no one in particular.

'How am I supposed to fucking know?' Ianto shouted at him.

'Calm down, everyone there is no point fighting amongst ourselves.' Toshiko tried to be the voice of reason. 'Owen, Gwen go and triple, quadruple check the CCTV footage, see if there's anything that can tell us, well anything.'

'Who died and made you leader?' Snorted Owen.

Toshiko just glared at him and he followed Gwen from the office without another word.

'Ianto, listen to me, whatever it takes we will do it to find Jack, do you understand?'

Ianto nodded as the damn broke and the tears he had been trying to hold in finally fell from his eyes and sobs tore through his body. Toshiko pulled him close and held him as he got the emotions he had been holding in flooded out of him.

The next few days just left them more and more frustrated, they couldn't find anything that could tell them who took Jack or where he was or for that matter what time he was in. Although no one had actually voiced it they were all thinking the same thing, Jack wasn't local anymore, in any sense of the meaning.

They called Martha, who called the Doctor. He arrived at the hub and he scrutinised the CCTV footage as closely as they had, even had the TARDIS analyse it and although he could tell them who took Jack, he had no idea why or where.

They were guns for hire, a kind of private police who would track down anyone for a fee, no questions asked and then with them what ever their client required. They weren't native to only one planet, or solar system for that matter and the organisation spanned over two hundred years of service.

The Doctor did all he could to help, but despite his searches he came up with nothing. It really was like looking for a needle in a haystack and a very large haystack at that. He told them he could search for a hundred years and still never find Jack.

They finally resigned themselves to the fact that Jack was gone forever, to each other at least. But when they thought about him they hoped with every ounce of their being that Jack would find his way back to them again.

It took Ianto a lot more time than the others to come to this same way of thinking, but he got there in the end. If anything it made him a little reckless, insisting on going with them for every mission and really not caring if her lived or died. It turned out that was to become the making of him, a very proficient team member in the field.

TBC


	3. Chapter 1b - Then

Jack was losing track of time, he was locked in a cell. He had no idea where he was, although he was certain he wasn't on earth anymore. Was he on another planet? On a spaceship of some kind? When was he? And the biggest question that played on his mind, why the fuck was he there?

He wanted so much to ask these questions but he had no one to put them too. He couldn't be sure but he thought he had been in the cell for nearly a month. Not one person had spoken to him in that time nor taken him anywhere else.

The room had a bed, with one pillow and a blanket. In the corner of the room was a small cubicle that contained a shower with a setting that dried you afterwards so need for towels and a toilet. Three times a day food would appear via a opening at the bottom of the door and every other day or so he would receive clean clothes in the form of a black jumpsuit.

Whoever was feeding him and keeping him in fresh clothes wasn't the talkative type, no matter what Jack said when the food or clothing appeared they stayed quiet. He had tried talking calmly, shouting, flirting and everything else in between.

He had no idea if it was night or day, Jack sat on hard bed leaning his head back against the wall behind and drew his knees up under his chin and wrapped his arms around them. He had tried to think of a way to escape every day, but he knew in his heart it was pointless.

When Jack did sleep, more out of boredom than tiredness, his sleep was mostly dreamless, but when he did dream it was usually about a young welsh man with a beautiful face. They were full of boring mundane things a lot of the time, but if he was lucky he found himself dreaming that they were making love in Ianto's large, warm, comfortable bed.

These dreams were what kept him going, being taken had made him realise something he hadn't thought of before. He, Captain Jack Harkness had fallen in love with Ianto Jones and that alone made him determined that he was going to, somehow get out of this place.

Then came the day Jack finally lost it, he thought he'd got used to the silence and loneliness but he had just woken for a dream about Ianto and he decided that he was going to get someone's attention no matter what, and it worked.

Jack flipped completely, he kicked the shit out of everything in the room, the metal structure of the bed bent under his weight as he jumped up and down on top of it, then it was the turn of the toilet, he kicked the bowl till it cracked and water started to seep out over the hard floor.

Jack wasn't finished, after battering the shower head with his boot he then used the boot to bash on the walls. And he cursed loudly in every language knew and a few he didn't except for a few choice swear words, till his voice became hoarse and his throat hurt.

Them he sat on the edge of the bent bed and waited for something to happen, he knew they must be watching him. He wasn't disappointed, five minutes or so later the door opened and in rushed three men in uniform.

They had him up against the wall before he could react and his hands cuffed and then led him from the room. Jack didn't say a word to them, he was saving his voice and throat for whoever it was he was being taken to see.

Jack was led down three or four corridors till they reached a door, nothing to distinguish it from the other doors they had past. No name plate, no number, nothing. A plain silver door that slid to one side when one of the men placed the palm of his hand against the panel next to it.

Two of the men stood outside and the third led him into the room, the room housed a large metal desk with a computer monitor on it, indicating that he was now in the future sometime as he was only about half a centimetre in thickness and transparent.

The rest of the room was bare, sat behind the desk was a man dressed like the three that had taken him there, except his tie was red and not black like the others. This must be what denoted his rank jack thought as he was pulled to a halt in front of the desk.

'That'll be all, thank you.' The man behind the desk told the man who had bought Jack in.

He nodded to the man behind the desk and left the room, no doubt waiting outside till he was summoned again.

The man behind the desk looked at Jack. 'Now that was all a bit pointless, don't you think?'

'No.' Replied Jack.

'What makes you think that?'

'It got me out that cell and here with you, I have questions I need answering, one in particular.'

'And what would that be?'

'Why an I here?'

'You should know that.'

'I have no fucking idea.'

'Language Captain, now tell me, where were you in the autumn of 5016?'

Jack looked at him with a horrified expression on his face and shook his head.

'I have no memory of that time, of that year. I had two years of my memory stolen.'

'That's very convenient.'

'It's the truth.'

'That could complicate things a little.' The man told him as he called the guard outside back in to take him to a new cell.

TBC


	4. Chapter 2a - Inbetween

Five years later Ianto Jones barely gave Jack Harkness a thought, for the last eighteen months he had been happily married to a lovely woman called China, when he first met her he thought how appropriate it was, she seemed as fragile and pale as a porcelain doll.

Looks can be deceptive though as Ianto knew, she was in fact a very strong and capable woman. He had been completely honest with her when they met, told her all about Jack and losing him, although not the exact details or Jack's name even and how he hadn't felt ready for another relationship since.

But he liked her and she liked him and friendship grew into love and they now had an sixteen month old lively toddler, Sky, to care for, she was as lovely as her mum. She knew he worked for Torchwood, she knew it meant he could be working all sorts of strange hours, but she didn't know exactly what he did.

He'd never told her how dangerous the job could be, if he got hurt he would call her and tell her he'd been called away and would go home a few days later or so when the would was healing and make excuses to avoid intimate physical contact till he could pass it off as something minor.

He hated lying to her, but he knew she wouldn't be happy with his choice of job of she knew the truth. And as much as he loved his wife and child he hadn't tried to reduce the risks he took in the field and life carried on a normal, till one day that summer.

They were on the beach on a gorgeous sunny day making the most of the hot spell, lying on towels and covered in sunblock to protect all their pale skins with their daughter playing in the sand in front of them, playing happily as she built sandcastles.

Ianto looked at his wife and said. 'You're stunning.'

'And you are beautiful.' She replied grinning at him.

It sent a bolt of lightening through him to his heart. No one had called him that in a very long time, she had never said that to him. Only one person had ever called him beautiful and that had been Jack. China saw the pain of his thoughts cross his face,

'Hey, you okay?'

'I'm sorry, it's just what you said, it bought back memories.'

'That you are beautiful?'

'Yep.'

'Him?'

Ianto nodded. 'He used to tell me that.'

'You loved him very much, didn't you.'

'Yep.'

'I'm sorry.'

'It's okay.'

Ianto got to his feet.

'I'm going for a walk.' Ianto told China. 'I won't be long.'

'Me come dada.' Sky bounced up and down beside him.

'You stay with mummy sweetheart and I'll bring ice creams back.'

'Okay dada.'

China watched Ianto's retreating figure sadly, she often wondered if Ianto loved her as much as he had loved the man before her. But she was the here and now and he was long gone, wasn't her? So she had nothing to worry about.

Ianto walked along the beach, wading through the shallow surf till he was away from the crowds and in a little cove that filled with water when the tide was in. He left the edge of the sea and walked up the beach to the cliff and sat on the sand.

He had blocked out all thoughts of Jack for a very long time, years. All it took was a few words and he flooded back into Ianto's mind. He loved China, and his little daughter, but he knew in his heart he would never love China as much as he had loved Jack.

If Jack suddenly appeared tomorrow he wouldn't know what to do, he couldn't just up and leave China, he couldn't do that to her and little Sky. But he also knew that he would have trouble staying away from Jack, and being unfaithful to China would be worse than leaving her.

Ianto realised he had tears falling down his face, thoughts of Jack could still make him cry after all this time. He wiped them away and stood up, brushing the sand from the back of his swim shorts and headed back to his wife and child. They were his life now.

TBC


	5. Chapter 2b - Inbetween

Jack had spent years in that cell, it was a prison ship he had discovered. The men were hired guns, but he had no idea who had sent them after him or why. No one would believe him when he told them time after time the event, whatever it was had been stolen from him with a whole two years of his life.

After the silence and solitude treatment, which had gone on for a long time came the torture. They wanted a confession, for him to admit what he had done they told him, that was what their client wanted. He would never be able to give them what they wanted and so it continued at a rate of every two of three days.

They never discovered he couldn't die thankfully, he didn't want to even think about what joy that would bring his torturers. But they did notice that he healed fast and made them a little freer with their punishments.

They tried anything and everything to get the confession required out of him, chained spread eagled by the wrists and ankles to a X frame they started with simple beatings by fists, then they added their boots into the equation, followed by whips, knives, hot irons, electric shocks ... the list went on and on.

Jack went to bed battered, bruised and even burnt and just as he was fully healed, two or three days later the assault on his body started again. He zoned out completely now, during the beatings. He focused on the one thing that had been keeping him sane, Ianto Jones.

He pictured him in his mind, his face, his smile, his eyes, the wonderful coffee he made, how he looked in those suits of his, how wonderful he was in bed, how beautiful he was. Sometimes he was so lost in his thoughts he found himself getting aroused.

This amused his tormentors, they thought he got off on being beaten. He never told them the truth, no matter how much they tried to humiliate him on the subject, it would just give them more ammunition to try and piss him off.

Then one day, out of the blue he was taken to that room again, where he was told that the person who was responsible for him being there had died, hence they weren't getting paid anymore and he was going to be set free, wasn't it his lucky day?'

'Lucky day?' Jack fumed. 'I have been beaten and tortured for what reason I don't know and all you can say is it's my lucky day?'

The man shrugged. 'If you had confessed you would have been out long before now.'

'I have no idea what I'm meant to have been confessing too, can't you tell me now?'

'No, strict instructions to never tell you, they never stated we could upon their death, so it dies with them.'

Jack made a noise not unlike a growl deep in the back of his throat.

'So, what happens to me now?'

'We drop you on the nearest planet.'

'What year is this?'

'5047.'

'I need to get back to Earth, 21st century.'

'That's your problem. We shall be landing on the planet Ho'sky in two days, you will then be free to go wherever and whenever you want.'

'Thanks a lot.' Jack sneered.

He was escorted back to his cell and remained there for the next two days. When they landed on Ho'sky he was led to the exit doors, cuffs then removed and shoved into the unknown. Jack tried to think positive, he was free, yes he was on a strange planet, in the future on another solar system, but he was one tiny step closer to getting home to Ianto.

TBC


	6. Chapter 3a - Now

Sky was the image of her mum, everyone said so but she had her dads eyes. Today was a rare day when Ianto was able to go with China to pick their daughter up from school, she was now almost seven and at big girls school as she liked to call it.

They watched as he came out of school surrounded by he friends, Ianto was happy she hadn't taken after him as he had been at school, shy with few friends. Her eyes lit up when she saw her daddy there with her mummy, she shouted her goodbye's to her friends and bounded across the playground to them excitedly.

'Daddy daddy daddy.' She shouted as she ran.

Ianto clasped his hands under her arms and span her round.

'Hello sweetheart.' He kissed her on the cheek before setting her down on her feet again. Sky gave her mum and hello hug and then the three of them started the short walk home, Sky between them holding their hands.

Three days later their world threatened to fall apart. China had found a lump in her breast while in the shower, she paniced instantly as her mother and an aunt had both died of cancer. Ianto had left early for work and there was only her and Sky in the house, she remained as calm as possible as she got dressed and took Sky to school then she went home and came undone.

She pulled herself together long enough to make a doctors appointment and phone Ianto. Come home was all she said as she burst into tears and then cut the call. Ianto left work that instant, telling the others he needed to go home and rushed from the hub.

When Ianto got home he found his wife sobbing on their bed, fitfully she told him what she had found. He held her tight as she cried into his shoulder soaking his t shirt till she cried herself to sleep, Ianto called Gwen and told her he wouldn't be back and then collected Sky from school.

He had called his parents and told them the situation, they were only to happy to look after Sky for as long as they needed. Sky was excited to be staying with her grandparents for a few days, she was too young to understand what was upsetting mummy and daddy.

Ianto went with her the next day to the doctors, the doctor ummed and arghed and then referred her to the hospital for tests, telling them they were to go now. They sat in the hospital waiting room in stunned silence waiting for China to be called, they waited nearly an hour.

Ianto waited helplessly as she was examined and then he was called into the room. China was to be admitted and a biopsy performed in the morning, if it came back positive for cancer cells they would remove part or all of the breast depending on the result.

Radiotherapy and chemotherapy may be needed too, they would only know after the biopsy what the exact treatment would be. China was to be admitted there and then, they followed the nurse up to the ward, where they were expected and she was shown her bed.

Ianto stayed with her till they told him he had to leave, he said he would be back with her overnight things and give them to one of the nurses for her and would be there in the morning to see her before her operation.

Ianto drove in a daze, life really was shit sometimes he thought. He stopped off at the hub on the way home, hoping to catch anyone that might still be there, he walked through the cog door and walked though to the main hub.

He could see Gwen, she was just slipping on her coat to leave for the night, she couldn't miss the red rims to his eyes.

'Ianto, what's the matter love?'

'China, she found a lump yesterday, she's having a biopsy tomorrow.'

'Oh Ianto, I'm so sorry, can I do anything?'

Ianto shook his head. 'No, I'm going to head home and get some of her things, I'll call you.'

They walked out the hub together, they exited via the now defunct tourist office door, Ianto locked it behind him and Gwen kissed him on the cheek and they went in their separate directions. Ianto wasn't ready to go home yet, he walked down to the bay, lent against the railings and stared into the water below.

Something caught the corner of his eye, he looked up and saw what he thought was the hem of a coat he knew so well vanish behind a building. He must have been imaging it, he told himself. But curiosity got the better of him.

*

It had taken Jack more than two years and more than a dozen actions of bribes, favours and downright cons to get back to Earth in the right century if more than a few years after he had been taken. And nearly another week to track down Ianto, he had been dropped in Scotland and it had taken two days of hitchhiking and sleeping rough to get to Wales and then another day to get to Cardiff.

The last day or so had been spent watching the hub, but he hadn't seen any sign of Ianto till now. He didn't live at the same address anymore and the landlord had said he had no idea where he had moved to, so it was his final hope.

Then as he was about to give up, that Ianto must have moved on he spotted him. Standing by the bay, looking into the water as if he wanted to jump straight in and drown himself. As soon as Jack realised that Ianto might spot him he rushed between two buildings.

As desperate as he was to be back with Ianto he had wanted to find out more about his life as it was now first, but it seemed this wasn't going to happen.

It was a dead end, there was no way to go except the way he entered and he could hear footsteps approaching. There was nowhere to hide, he'd just have to face him. Ianto came into view, he stopped and stared at Jack as if he was seeing a ghost.

Jack walked forward and stopped when he was less than a foot in front of him, he could miss the pain etched across Ianto's face, the redness left from crying around his eyes. Ianto just continued to look at him as if he thought he was dreaming. All thoughts of himself and how he felt went from his mind now as he looked the pain in the face of the man in front of him, he looked like he was about to fall apart.

TBC


	7. Chapter 3b - Now

'Ianto?' Jack said softly.

'Are you real?'

'Very.' Jack reached out to touch Ianto's cheek, but Ianto flinched from his touch.

'I thought I was dreaming, or that you were a ghost.'

'No, I'm really here.'

Ianto reached out hesitantly and touched Jack's shoulder before withdrawing it again quickly.

'How ... what ... why now?'

'It's taken me all this time to come back to you, I never stopped wanting to come back to you.'

'Where were you?'

'On a prison ship, after all this time I still don't know why.'

'You escaped?'

'They let me go.'

Ianto went silent for a few moments as Jack tried to read what was going on behind his eyes.

'My wife has cancer, could have cancer.' Ianto blurted out.

'You're married?' Jack tried to keep the surprise and disappointment out of his voice.

'China, she's called China.'

'Where is she?'

'In hospital, having a biopsy in the morning.' Tears began to slip down Ianto's face again. 'Why did you have to come back now?'

Ianto turned and walked away before Jack could say anything. Jack rushed after him, grabbed his shoulder and stopped his walking before pulling him close, letting him cry into his shoulder. Jack kissed the top of his head, inhaling Ianto's unique scent as he did so desperately trying to quell the thoughts and urges it was sending through his body and mind.

'Want to talk?' Jack asked when the crying subsided, anything to be close to him.

'I should go, I have to get her overnight things.'

'Soon, you can't drive in this state. Talk to me.'

'Yep, okay.' Ianto nodded slowly, looking at the ground beneath his feet as if scared to look Jack in the eye.

'We should go somewhere, your place? The hub?'

'Nope, I don't know ...'

'Come on.' Jack put his arm around Ianto's shoulder and led him along the bay, Ianto didn't put up any resistance.

Ianto didn't take any notice of where he was being led, Jack took him to a local hotel and got them a room for the night, it didn't matter what one, they just needed somewhere to talk. They entered the room, it was clean but basic, double bed, two bedside tables, dressing table and wardrobe and en suite bathroom.

Jack led Ianto to the bed and sat Ianto on the edge, sitting next to him as close as he could. He put his arm around Ianto's shoulder, happy when it wasn't shrugged off, resisting the urge to hold him tight and kiss him. Ianto kept his eyes firmly downcast as they sat there.

'Talk to me, tell me everything.' Jack told him gently.

'She found a lump yesterday, the doctor sent her to the hospital today and they admitted her straight away. Her mum and aunt both died of cancer, she's so scared.'

'All you can do is be there for her.' Jack said gently. 'And pray she's okay, tell her you love her.'

Jack was trying so hard to just be there for him but it was getting harder by the minute to keep control of his own feelings.

'What if she's not, what if she dies? What will Sky do without her mummy?'

'You have a daughter?'

Jack thought his heart would stop there and then.

'She's nearly seven.' Ianto gave a small smile as he spoke of her.

'Is she beautiful like her daddy?'

'Jack, don't, please.'

'Don't what?'

'Flirt with me, I'm with China now, I love her.'

'I missed you so much, you kept me going when they ... they ...'

'When who did what Jack?' Ianto finally looked at Jack, seeing the pain in his former lovers eyes. The eyes he used to drown in he thought, before mentally shaking it from his head again.

'I was tortured, for what I don't know but the thought of coming back to you kept me sane.'

Ianto placed his hand on Jack's cheek. 'I thought you had gone forever, I waited more than three years for you to come back.'

'I understand, you had to get on with your life.' Jack answered sadly as he lifted Ianto's hand from his face and kissed the palm.

At that moment their eyes locked.

Seconds later their mouths were on each others as they both released their pent up emotions, lips crushed lips and teeth clashed violently and their tongues invaded each others mouths. They stood up from the bed and stripped each other of their coats without their mouths breaking contact.

Then arms went around each others bodies, each pulling the other as close as possible. Hands moving over backs, hips and arses as they continued their violent kiss. Jack grasped the bottom of Ianto's t shirt, breaking the kiss momenterally to pull it off over Ianto's head.

Jack ran the fingers of one hand through the soft hairs on Ianto's chest, a feeling he had missed more than he realised. Ianto's hands were on the buckle of his belt, fumbling with it, opening it blindly, then his trousers.

Jack gasped loudly as Ianto's hand slipped inside his trousers. And then Ianto stopped, he withdrew his hand from Jack's trousers and his lips from Jack's. Ianto's face was flushed with lust, his eyes burning with passion and guilt.

'I can't Jack, I'm sorry.' Ianto picked his t shirt up from the floor. ' I can't do this.'

'Ianto, don't go please, you shouldn't be alone tonight.'

'I can't trust myself Jack.' Picking up his coat he headed out the room without saying another word.

Jack lay on the bed, curled into a ball and cried, sobbed, for himself, for Ianto the man he still loved and even for China and Sky.

TBC


	8. Epilogue - Later

Ianto watched his daughter getting ready for her first date, she was still so young at only just turned sixteen. Her face was made up perfectly to look like she was barely wearing any make up, her skirt a little to short for his liking but he knew better than to say so, at least her t shirt was modest.

He had given her the talk, about drink, drugs and sex, he hoped without it sounding like a lecture and just fatherly advice. It wasn't as hard as he thought it was going to be, since her mum had died when she was so young he had been both mum and dad to her, having to help her with all the things girls went though.

She had never given him any need for concern, she was a good student at school and passed all her GCSE's, she now had the summer to herself before she was off to college to do her A Levels. Until now she had never shown much interest in boys and for that he was grateful, he had met the lad in question and he seemed like a nice boy.

Didn't stop him worrying though, they all tried to impress the girls father don't they? Jack had tried to tell him he worried to much, that she was a big girl now, ha, that's what worried him. He had to let her grow up sometime Jack told him.

He kissed her on the cheek and told her to have a good time, but not too good a time as she left for her date. As she opened the door Jack was walking up the path, he whistled at her and told her she looked gorgeous.

'Have a great evening.' He told her as she tottered down the path in unfamiliar heels.

'You too Uncle Jack, don't do anything I won't be doing.' She laughed cheekily.

When Jack reached the front door and he and Ianto watched as she got into the waiting car and waved as it drove away. Jack pushed the door closed and turned to Ianto, kissing him softly on the lips.

'You okay?'

'Yep, she's the spitting image of her mum.'

'You'll always miss her, she was part of your life, you loved her and she gave you a beautiful daughter.' Jack told him.

'Such a waste, no one should die like that, it makes no sense.'

'Life isn't logical.'

'But does it have to be such a bitch?'

'Yeah, it seems that way.'

'You came back to me when I needed you most.'

'I was always coming back to you.'

'I never stopped loving you Jack, even when I was in love with China.'

'I know, I know.' Jack wiped away the stray tear that was trailing down Ianto's cheek.

'Take me to bed Jack, show me how much you love me.'

'Can I do all those things Sky isn't going to do?'

'You better.' Ianto smiled.

Jack led Ianto up the stairs and into their room, they stripped each other slowly and climbed onto the bed.

'I love you, beautiful.' Jack whispered against Ianto's lips as his hand ghosted over Ianto's body.

'Show me, gorgeous.' Ianto pulled Jack's head down and crushed his lips against Jack's.

*

He never should have gone back to Jack in that hotel room that night, the night China was admitted to hospital but he couldn't help himself, he'd got as far as the lift and pressed the button to call it to the floor when he turned around and headed straight back.

Jack hadn't locked the door behind him he discovered as he tried the handle, he was shocked to see Jack curled on the bed sobbing into the pillow. He shrugged off his coat, slipped off his shoes and climbed onto the bed.

Jack looked up as he felt the bed dip beside him, confusion on his face.

'I need you more than I can deny, even to myself.' He told Jack.

Jack pulled him down and kissed him deeply.

'Sure?'

Ianto nodded. 'Yep.'

That night they sought comfort in each others bodies, made love all night, at first hard, fast and lust fueled and then later tender and loving, barely holding their emotions in check. The next morning as Ianto left to go home and then to the hospital he told Jack it couldn't and wouldn't ever happen again as long as he was with China, but that he would never regret it either. But he needed Jack more than ever and Jack was willing to be there for him, whatever the future held.

Ianto was true to his word, he introduced Jack to China as a friend and Sky adored him. They didn't share more than the odd chaste and sometimes not so chaste kiss till long after she past away and Sky had accepted that Jack was to be part of their family. The cancer had been aggressive and she'd barely had more than two months after her diagnosis, but between the three of them they made what was left of her life a happy one.

The End.


End file.
